Literal Meaning:“since Christ suffered for us in the flesh”,
“Christ”: the incarnated Christ Jesus (see 1Tim. 1:15); “suffered in the
flesh”, he was evil treated and was crucified on the cross (see 2:22-24; 3:18).

Christ suffered before us, which has
many aspects of significance: 1) to make the captain of their salvation perfect
through sufferings (Heb. 2:10); 2) to leave us an example that we should follow
His steps (see 2:21); 3) to sympathize with our weakness and He is able to aid
those who are tempted (Heb. 4:15; 2:18).

“Arm yourselves with the same mind”,
“arm yourselves”, Christians should follow the steps of the Lord (see 2:21);
“the same mind”: the mind of suffering, namely, be determined to face the
suffering; note that the mind of suffering does not equal to suffering itself.
The mind of suffering means that one is willing to suffer in heart, but not the
practical experience of suffering. “Arm yourselves”, it indicates that the life
of Christians is the life of war and the best way of arming oneself is
suffering. In other words, if we want to put on the whole armor of God, we have
to suffer.

Suffering is inevitable to Christians,
because: 1) suffering is a kind of trial of faith (see 1:6-7); 2) we are called
to suffer for doing good (see 2:20-21); 3) blessed is he who suffers for
righteousness’ sake (see 3:14); 4) the will of God is to suffer for doing good
(see 3:17); 5) Christ has left the examples of suffering in the flesh (see
2:21; 4:1).

“For he who suffered in the flesh has
ceased from sin”, “for…”, here it will give the reason why we have to arm
ourselves with the mind of suffering; “suffer in the flesh”: it is not
suffering for the sake of evil, but for the sake of doing good; “has ceased
from sin”, it does not mean suffering has the effect of removing sin, but that
when we are willing to suffer in the flesh, all the associations with sin are
ceased and the enticing power of sin stops working and becomes unable to work
any more.

Enlightenment in the Word:

1)He who has the mind of suffering may not
suffer. On the contrary, the more we are unwilling to suffer, the more shall we
suffer and the harder shall we bear it.

2)Since suffering is inevitable to Christians,
we’d better prepare ourselves and let the suffering profit us, thus we will not
suffer in vain.

3)Many times, our failure to overcome
sufferings is not because of our lack of such power, but lack of the mind of
suffering. If one’s mind is moved, he will feel much difficult to bear the
suffering.

4)Before the kingdom of God
is completely built, the life of Christians in the world is a spiritual
warfare. And mind is our main weapon that deals with our lusts and makes us
cease from sin.

5)The mind of suffering is the spiritual
weapon of overcoming various temptations of the devil. Various temptations
include more or less the fleshly pleasures and the avoidance of suffering. If
we arm ourselves with such mind of suffering, the deceiving power of the devil
will be paralyzed in us.

6)We who have been baptized unto Christ, we
have not only died with Christ so that the body of sin is annulled but also
risen with Christ to overcome sin (see Rom. 6:6).

7)When we are focusing on things Christ and
things He asks us to do, sin cannot defeat us in our suffering. When a man
chooses rather to suffer than to sin, he will not be dominated by the flesh.

8)If one has gone through persecutions and not
rejected Christ, his personality and faith have been seriously tried.
Therefore, temptations can do nothing to him.

1Pet.4:2 “that he no longer should
live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will
of God.”

YLT:
“no more in the desires of men, but in the will of God, to live the rest of the
time in the flesh;”

Literal
Meaning:“that he no longer … for the lusts of men”,
“that he no longer”, it means that the mind of suffering makes us overcome the
lusts of men. “The lusts of men”, both of “lusts” and “men” are in the plural,
so “the lusts of men” indicate that the abnormal intercourse of men makes the
passions and lusts of men exposed ever-seriously and become innumerous human
passions and desires.

“Should live the rest of his time in the flesh but for the will of God”,
here “the will of God” is opposite to “the lusts of men”. According to this
book, “the will of God” is to suffer for doing good (see 3:17; 4:19), and “the
lusts of men” is to make us enjoy this life (see v.3). “Live the rest of his
time”: spend the rest of one’s days in the world (see 1:17).

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)If we are dominated by the flesh and lusts,
we cannot keep the will of God.

2)If one pays attention to only earthly riches
and pleasures, he will be the man who is most easily to be attacked and hurt,
for the earthly material things are merely as transient as a fleeting cloud.

3)The flesh lusts in us against the Spirit
that we should not do those things which we desire (Gal. 5:16-17; Rom.
8:5-7). In such “war”, we have to choose God instead of the flesh by using our
will. And it is the mind of suffering that makes us choose the will of God
rather than our own pleasure.

4)Since we have become Christians, we are
appointed to choose the life style different from the common people ---- that
is, obey the will of God and deny impiety and worldly lusts and live soberly
and justly and piously in the present course of things (Titus 2:12).

1Pet.4:3 “For we have spent enough
of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles--when we walked in
lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable
idolatries.”

YLT:
“for sufficient to us the past time of life the will of the nations to have
wrought, having walked in lasciviousnesses, desires, excesses of wines,
revelings, drinking-bouts, and unlawful idolatries,”

Literal
Meaning: “for we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the
will of the Gentiles--when we walked in lewdness”,
“enough” it is emphatic, which shows that
everything in the past is enough and the sins and iniquities of the Gentiles
have been full; “do”: practice; “the Gentiles”: all the nations, namely, all
the uncircumcised except for the Samaritans. In the early church time, the
Gentiles referred to all the unbelievers of the world; “lewdness”: indulge
oneself especially in sexual immorality, namely, do the actions of
lasciviousness;

“Our past time … in doing … walked”, the three words describing the past
condition show that such situation should come to an end. “Walked”, it refers
to an action that will not be done any more.

“Lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties”, “lusts”: the immoral
covetousness, especially unlawful lasciviousness with the purpose of obtaining
sexual satisfaction by unlawful means; “drunkenness”: let oneself drunken by
alcohol so that his will become weakened and he is unable to resist the
temptations; “revelries”: gather riotously and carouse all night; “drinking
parties”: some wild carousal often causes riots and conflicts and fights

“Abominable idolatries”, “abominable”, it is an abomination to God;
“idolatries”, it means worshipping false gods originally. In the modern society,
the worship of false gods decreases as man’s cultivated level increases.
However, there are many people that become to worship all kinds of men and
things, including stars and giants and entertainment and sports and wealth and
apparel etc.

Sins mentioned here can be divided into two
sorts: the first is lusts and the other is idolatry. Both of them are closely
linked and abet one another, for in the Scriptures the sin of idolatry is often
mentioned with the sin of lewdness and covetousness together (see 1Cor. 6:9;
Eph. 5:5; Col.
3:5).

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)Once man rejects God, his moral standard
will be accordingly decreased. Once the moral standard is decreased, man will
do whatever he wants to do and indulge himself in pleasures of sin.

2)The pursuit of the pleasures of carousal and
lewdness is the chief criminal of the corruption of virtues. And both of them
are closely linked. No wonder that the Chinese ancestors put “wine” and
“fornication” together.

3)The heathen religions that worship idols are
the breeding ground of sins and corruption. Where there is so called
“celebration of offering to gods”, there will be things of alcohol and sexual
immorality.

4)In the church, Christians often uphold the
spiritual giants they respect above what is written in the Scriptures (see
1Cor. 4:6). Is it abominable idolatry in the sight of God.

5)Every Christian is supposed to feel the life
in sins is bored and is “enough”.

1Pet.4:4 “In regard to these, they
think it strange that you do not run with them in the same flood of
dissipation, speaking evil of you.”

YLT:
“in which they think it strange -- your not running with them to the same
excess of dissoluteness, speaking evil,”

“That you do not run with them in the same flood of
dissipation”, “run with”: not be
associated with the evil tide; “the same flood of dissipation”: the effusion of
passions;

“They think it strange … speaking evil of
you”, “strange”, those who are of the world have already been inured to such
life style, and yet think it strange of the normal life style of Christians.
“Speaking evil of you”: slander out of evil;

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)The moral degeneration of the world is
getting worse day by day. Human desires flow everywhere and even evolve into a
swallowing tide ---- no matter young or old, all of them seek the gladness of
erotic pleasures.

2)Believers who are regarded strange by people
in the world are not strange, but normal. Believers shall not dare not to
refuse sins because of the fear of being regarded as strange.

3)Those whose courses are different cannot lay
plans for one another. Christians are not associated with the evil tide of the
world in the way of life, so they are regarded as strange. And men of the world
will speak evil of Christians.

4)Christians’ holy conversation that is
separated from sins is often the reason why they are often envied and slandered
and persecuted by strangers.

1Pet.4:5 “They will give an account
to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead.”

YLT:
“who shall give an account to Him who is ready to judge living and dead,”

Literal
Meaning:“they”: those who have fallen into the
morally corrupted tide (see v.4); “Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead”, the Lord who judges all; “give an account to”: give an account to God concerning their
works including persecutions against Christians;

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)Christ will come again to judge one day (see
Matt. 25:31-32). Both the living ones when He comes again and the dead will
stand before the throne to be judged (see Rev. 20:12-13).

2)The principle of the world is to see who
gains the upper hand “today”. However, the principle of Christians is to see
who will be approved before the judgment-seat “in future”.

3)We are saved because of our faith in Jesus
(see Acts 16:31). However, judgment is according to our walking in daily life.

4)Men likes to lord themselves today, so they
“do and speak whatever they desire to”. However, one day, the real Lord will
come and will reward us according to our works (Rom. 2:6) and will justify or
condemn us according to our words (see Matt. 12:37).

1Pet. 4:6 “For this reason the
gospel was preached also to those who are dead, that they might be judged
according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.”

YLT:
“for for this also to dead men was good news proclaimed, that they may be
judged, indeed, according to men in the flesh, and may live according to God in
the spirit.”

Meaning
of Words:“the
gospel was preached”: the announcement
of the gospel; “according to”:
according as;

Literal
Meaning:“for this reason the gospel was preached also to those who
are dead”, “for
this reason”: for the sake of
the judgment in future (see v.5); “those who are dead”, those who were dead
when Peter wrote this epistle; according to the last half part of this verse,
the dead here may refer to believers who have been fallen asleep; “gospel”:
good news; in the original, it means that those who have heard the gospel have
got the chance to repent and be saved; “the gospel was preached to …”, the
problem here was when the gospel was preached to them, and the sound
explanation was that the gospel had been preached to them when they were alive,
not after they died.

“That they might be judged according to men in the flesh”, “that they might
be”, it will give the purpose of the preachment of the gospel to them; “according to men in the
flesh”, they were treated
as all human beings in the flesh were worthy to be; “be judged”: be judged by
God;

Note the both “judge”s in this verse and the
previous verse are the same word. However, in verse five it is in the present
tense, and in this verse it is the past tense. Therefore, they are different in
meaning. Judge in verse five refers to the judgment in the future and in this
verse refers to the judgment in this life, including the judgment of God and
the chastening judgment of God Christ had borne for human beings on the cross
(see 2:24) (see Heb. 12:10; 1Cor.11:31-32).

This verse points that the purpose of
preaching the gospel to men is to let men, in the light of God’s judgment, know
their mortal fleshly life because of sin so that they will receive the
redemption of Christ on the cross (see 2:24).

“But live according to God in the spirit”, “spirit”, the spirit of believers in them,
which was dead before they believed the Lord (see Eph. 2:1, 5); “live according
to God in the spirit”, the spirit once was dead had been revived when believers
were reborn again (see 1:23; 2:2; Eph. 2:5) and would still live according to
God (see Rom. 6:10-11).

This verse and verse 18 in chapter three correspond to each other
---- “be judged” corresponds to “be put to death” (3:18). If we put this verse
and 2:24 together, we will find this verse indicates that the flesh of
believers has been put to death by God with Jesus Christ because of sin (i.e.
be judged). However, they have been justified by faith and their spirit live
with Christ in righteousness (see Rom. 4:25).

There are also Bible expositors who have
other views ---- according to the theme of this epistle that Peter exhorts
believers to live according to the will of God (see 2:15, 20; 3:17; 4:19;
5:1-2) in the suffering of persecutions, judgment of this verse and verse
seventeen refers to God’s chastening to believers (see Heb. 12:5-13). Through
the persecutions and suffering of the world, we have to experience God’s
judgment in the chastening so that our flesh will be dealt with and be put to
death and we will live according to God in the spirit (see 2Cor. 1:9).

What is worthy to be paid attention to there
are many comparisons of deep meanings in this verse ---- be judged and preach
the gospel, flesh and spirit, according to men and according to God, and be
dead and live; according to men, flesh and be judged and be dead belong to one
group; and preach the gospel and spirit and according to God and live are of
another group.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)The content of the gospel is: if man is
willing to receive the judgment of the cross by God, he will be delivered from
the terrible end of the judgment in future.

2)Judgment in this age is not terrible. What
is really terrible is the impending judgment (see v.5).

3)It is the portion of men once to die (Heb.
9:27). It is better for believers to live in spirit according to God than to
live in the flesh in vain.

4)Many believers have a name that they live,
and are dead (see Rev. 3:1). We choose rather to live even though we have been
dead than to be a walking corpse even when we are living.

1Pet.4:7 “But the end of all things
is at hand; therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers.”

YLT:
“And of all things the end hath come nigh; be sober-minded, then, and watch
unto the prayers,”

Literal
Meaning:“but the end of all things is at hand”,“the end of all things” refers to the last days (see 2Tim. 3:1);
“at hand”: before your eyes, near the end;

“Therefore be serious and watchful in your prayers”, “therefore”, it is the response to the
previous verse. “The end of all things is at hand”, the reason is sufficient
enough to make us rise. “Be serious”, it means that one’s mind is clear and sound
without any foolishness. “Watchful”: sober and attentive, its meaning is close
to the word “serious”; “prayers”, it contains a meaning of relying on God in
everything.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)To those who indulge themselves in lusts and
run in the flood of dissipation, all things that they enjoy in the flesh are
passing and the rest days are few. To believers in the suffering, the end is
coming and the days of suffering are not many.

2)“The end of all things”, to us, it is not the ruin of our hope, but just
the starting of the fulfillment of our hope (see 1:3-5; 5:4). Therefore, “at
hand”, it means that the target will soon be reached.

3)“At hand”, it is coming to the end. In the
last past of the race, we are supposed to have better performance and run with
faster speed rather than be enticed or deceived to wrong way.

4)The night is far spent, the day is at hand.
That now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer
than when we first believed (Rom. 13:11-12).

5)There are not many days for believers to
suffer the slander and afflictions and injustice in the world for the sake of
the Lord. Therefore, let us be serious and watchful in prayers.

6)Our keeping serious is for the purpose of
being watchful and keeping a normal life with prayers. If one’s mind is slow
and unclear, it is easy for him to indulge himself and lose responsibility, let
alone prayer.

7)Believers’ prayer life should not be
influenced by the terror or emotional fluctuation caused by pressure.
Believers’ relationship with God should not be affected by the unfavorable
environment.

1Pet.4:8 “And above all things have
fervent love for one another, for "love will cover a multitude of
sins."”

YLT:
“and, before all things, to one another having the earnest love, because the
love shall cover a multitude of sins;”

Meaning
of Words:“above all”: what is
most important, the very first; “fervent”: earnest, intent, without ceasing;
“cover”: conceal, hide; “sin”: miss the mark, trespass;

Literal
Meaning:“and above all things have fervent love for one another”, “and above all
things”, it is of chief importance in the church life when we wait for the
Lord; “fervent love”, here love is the divine love (agape), not the common love
of men (philadelphia).
“Fervent” means earnest and zealous, and it is a picture of galloping horses.
Here the fervent love shows that we will balk at no sacrifice even that of our
lives for the sake of love (see 1:22).

“For "love will cover a multitude of sins"”, “love will cover”, it does not mean that
love enables us to conceal sin or be surrendered to sin, but that love makes us
bear the iniquities of others so as not to multiply sins but eliminate sins. “A
multitude of sins” refer to the sins of those whom are loved (see James 5:20),
not that of he who loves.

Note that this verse does not say love has
the effect of putting away sins or forgiving our sins. Only the precious blood
of Christ can put sins away. We should not take this verse as an excuse of
indulging sins by this verse nor let the church shift off the responsibility of
disciplining those who have committed sins.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)“Fervent love”, since it is not the
hypocrite love, it will not be lost easily because of frustration.

2)The true love in the church makes us choose
rather to suffer loss of ourselves and seek profit of others than to seek our
own profit. Such love makes us transcend the loss and overcome many things in
which we have been defrauded.

3)Hatred stirs up strifes, but love covers all
transgressions (Pro. 10:12). Love makes us unwilling to declare the faults of
brothers before men so as not to cause many contentions and evil things, lest
the Lord’s name should be much insulted.

4)Love helps us to restore the faults of
brothers and brings them back from error of his way so as not to commit a
multitude of sins (see Gal. 6:1; James 5:19-20).

1Pet.4:9 “Be hospitable to one
another without grumbling.”

YLT:
“hospitable to one another, without murmuring;”

Meaning
of Words:“be hospitable”: be fond of guests; “grumbling”: complaint;

Literal
Meaning:“be hospitable”:
it includes hospitality and opening one’s own house as a gathering place to the
local church;

“Without grumbling”, be willing to show hospitality to the
other side (Rom. 12:13) and bear many inconvenience and make sacrifices;

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)Hospitality to the saints not only helps
others but also oneself and brings him heavenly blessings (see Heb. 13:2).
Where there is payment, there will be rewards.

2)Hospitality is a “mutual” action. We shall
not expect others to be hospitable to us, but we do not show any hospitality to
them.

3)Hospitality often brings a lot of
inconvenience and troubles, so man may have grumbles in heart. Therefore, we
have to pray to God to help us remove grumbling without out letting it off
before the guests.

4)Someone pleases to receive the strange
guests, but refuses those who are around him and is unwilling to open his heart
to receive them. We have to know that hospitality starts from “heart” as well
as those whom we touch.

5)At that time, believers received mainly the
brothers who worked outside for the name of the Lord so as to work with them
together (see 3John v.7-8). To receive brothers makes us have part in the works
they are doing. Therefore, we should never receive those who preach the heresy
(e.g. the witness of Jehovah, the Mormons etc.), lest we should be partakers of
their evil deeds (2John v.10-11).

1Pet.4:10 “As each one has received
a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of
God.”

YLT:
“each, according as he received a gift, to one another ministering it, as good
stewards of the manifold grace of God;”

Literal
Meaning:“as each one has received a gift, minister it to one
another”, “received a gift”: the talent given by the Spirit
to everyone according as he pleases (see 1Cor. 12:11). Through such gift,
believers are enabled to do what God has appointed them to do (Rom.
12:6-8). “Minister it to one another”: serve men and be served by men;

“As good stewards of the manifold grace of God”, “manifold grace”: grace of all sorts;
“steward”: be in charge of governing and distributing all household duties and
family properties;

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)God has not given all gifts to one person,
but distributed a particular part to everyone so that we will rely on one
another and fill up what is lacking in the body.

2)Great gift does not represent great success,
for “success” is decided by whether we have used the gifts given by God
faithfully.

3)Gift is for the purpose of service, not
showing off oneself. Stewards do not possess family properties, but are in
charge of governing and distributing them.

4)Each steward has to give an account to his
master (Luke 12:42-48; 1Cor. 4:1-5). Whether the steward will be rewarded is
not decided by the gifts he has received, but by whether he has used them
according to God’s command or whether he has used for God or himself.

5)The Lord’s workers should stand in the
position of stewards, not masters. No matter how great the effect of works is,
they always confess that is their duty without any boasting (Luke 17:10).

1Pet.4:11 “If anyone speaks, let him
speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the
ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through
Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever.
Amen.”

YLT:
“if any one doth speak -- `as oracles of God;' if any one doth minister -- `as
of the ability which God doth supply;' that in all things God may be glorified
through Jesus Christ, to whom is the glory and the power -- to the ages of the
ages. Amen.”

Literal
Meaning: “if anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God”, “as the oracles of God”: cut in a
straight line the word of truth (2Tim. 2:15 the original).

“If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability
which God supplies”, “the ability which God supplies”: it includes the
physical and mental and material ability; “with the ability…”: serve brothers
and sisters for the sake of serving God according to the ability given by God;

“That in all things God may be glorified through Jesus
Christ”, “all things”: all things concerning service;
“through Jesus Christ”, it indicates that we have to service through providing
Christ; “be glorified”: let God be manifested;

“To whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and
ever. Amen”, “glory”: the
condition when God manifests (see Ex. 40:34-35); “dominion”: the internal power
of God; “to whom”, glory and dominion belong to God only. Except Him, no one is
worthy of glory and dominion. “Forever and ever”: from generation to
generation, from everlasting to everlasting; “amen”: it is true and sure;

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)Oracles are not views of men. The success of
a preacher does not lie in the eloquence and sweet words, but whether it is
spoken according to the true meaning of God’s word. Preachers preach the
messages God has entrusted to him, not the knowledge they have created of
themselves.

2)Indeed preachment should be according to the
Scriptures. However, preachers shall interpret the Scriptures according to
their own will. Today, the biggest crisis of preachers is to presume to use
God’s word for his own purpose ---- raise a viewpoint first and then prove it
by the word of God.

3)It is not enough to talk about the
Scriptures only. The preachers should make sure that what they are talking is
just what God asks them to talk to all right now. Even though one has the gift
of preaching or teaching, he has to be sure that his words are what God wants
him to speak in the specific condition.

4)Not everyone shall be a teacher or preacher.
But everyone has to bear witness to the Lord. Not everyone shall be an elder or
minister, but all believers have to serve one another in the church.

5)Here preachers and servants are put
together, so the apostle did not think preachers have some differences with the
servants. On the contrary, both of them have received the gifts of God.

6)He who serves God should be with the ability
given by God so that he will get twice the result with half the effort and be
perseverant. Services according to the occasional enthusiasm and zeal cannot be
kept long.

7)God gives us talents and gifts and chances
of using gifts. Only He is worthy of the highest glory. Amen. That’ right. All
the fulfillments are of God.

1Pet.4:12 “Beloved, do not think it
strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange
thing happened to you;”

YLT:
“Beloved, think it not strange at the fiery suffering among you that is coming
to try you, as if a strange thing were happening to you,”

Literal
Meaning:“beloved … concerning the fiery trial which
is try you”, the meaning of the “fiery trial” includes: 1) it is like the
burning fire of the trial, which makes men unable to stand; 2) trial is a kind
of exercise through fire that makes men become more purified;

“Do not think it strange … as though some strange thing happened to
you”, “not think it strange”, it indicates that common believers think
suffering is strange and believers of the Lord are supposed to enjoy peace and
profit. “As though some strange thing happened to you”, here it is the
explanation of the previous verse ---- think that suffering is unusual.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)There is a great distinction between the
common scrap and the refined metal. Likewise, faith after fiery trial is of
more honorable usage for believers before God.

2)We have to know that “all who desire to live
piously in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2Tm. 3:12). It is not strange.

3)We believers need not to regard the coming
suffering “strange”. Instead, we have to be strong in the Lord lest we should
be deceived.

4)Satan never wastes its ammunition upon the
nominal Christians, but aims at those who have shaken the doorsill of the hell.

1Pet.4:13 “but rejoice to the extent
that you partake of Christ's sufferings, that when His glory is revealed, you
may also be glad with exceeding joy.”

YLT:
“but, according as ye have fellowship with the sufferings of the Christ,
rejoice ye, that also in the revelation of his glory ye may rejoice --
exulting;”

“To the extent that you partake of Christ’s sufferings”, “partake of …
suffering”: have part in the suffering; “partake of Christ’s sufferings”: bear
the suffering of persecutions for the sake of the Lord (see Matt. 5:11) ----
this is the source of Christians’ joy.

“That when His glory is revealed, you may also be glad with exceeding
joy”, “His glory is revealed”: when Christ comes again (see 5:1; Col. 3:4); “be
glad with exceeding joy”, when Christ comes again, the suffering of Christians
will be ended and rewarded.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)When suffering comes upon us, let us not
firstly ask for the removal of the suffering, but the transformation of our
attitude towards the suffering.

2)When we feel suffering for the Lord is a
kind of joy and glory, “suffering” is no longer our burden.

3)If we suffer for the name of the Lord, we
are partakers of “the tribulations of Jesus” (see Rev. 1:9). This is our great
honor.

4)We have the presence of the Lord (2Tim.
4:17) in suffering. If we suffer with Him in this age, we will partake of the
eternal glory with Him (1Pet. 5:1; 2Tim. 2:12-13).

5)The suffering believers suffer is temporary.
There is glory for believers when He reveals. The present suffering is the
coming glory. He who escapes suffering is escaping glory.

6)If the children of God rejoice in the
present suffering, their joy will be much more multiplied when the glory of
Christ is revealed.

1Pet.4:14 “If you are reproached for
the name of Christ, blessed are you, for the Spirit of glory and of God rests
upon you. On their part He is blasphemed, but on your part He is glorified.”

YLT:
“if ye be reproached in the name of Christ -- happy , because the Spirit of
glory and of God upon you doth rest; in regard, indeed, to them, he is
evil-spoken of, and in regard to you, he is glorified;”

Literal
Meaning:“if you are reproached for the name of
Christ, blessed are you”, “are reproached for the name of Christ”: “are
reproached in the name of Christ”: partake of Christ’s suffering (see v.13) and
bear His reproach (Heb. 13:13) because of believing the name of Christ and
being united with Christ; “blessed are you”: for the heavenly reward is great
(see Matt. 5:11-12);

“For the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you”, “for”, here it
points out the blessed reason for believers’ suffering for Christ; “the Spirit
of glory and of God”: namely, the Holy Spirit, who makes men foretaste the
glory of God (see Eph. 1:14); “rests upon you”: be covered by the power of the
Spirit (see 2Cor. 12: 9-10; Gen. 1:2);

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)“For the name of Christ”, it shows that the greatest value of our
suffering is not decided by the condition of suffering, but whether it is “for
Christ”.

2)It is indeed the Spirit of God dwells in
every true child of God. However, He dwells in those who follow Christ with
whole heart in a particular manner. They know the presence and power of the
Spirit of God, but others do not.

3)The Spirit of glory and of God often rests
upon those who suffer for Christ and is their glory (Ps. 3:3; 89:17), proving
that they are supposed to enjoy the glory with the Lord and helping them to
glorify God in sufferings.

1Pet.4:15 “But let none of you
suffer as a murderer, a thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in other people's
matters.”

YLT:
“for let none of you suffer as a murderer, or thief, or evil-doer, or as an
inspector into other men's matters;”

Meaning
of Words:“busybody
in other people's matters”: over see others’
affairs, meddler;

Literal
Meaning:“but let none of you suffer as a murderer”,
“of you”: of true Christians; “murderer”: he may have not committed murder; if
a Christian has enmity against someone, he has committed sin in the sight of
the Lord (see Matt. 5:21-22).

“A thief, an evildoer, or as a busybody in
other people’s matters”, “thief”, it includes covetousness for things of others
and everything in heart; “evildoer”: all evil words and evil deeds (see v.3;
3:10-11); “as a busybody in other people’s matters”, it is a compound
comprising two words ---- “belong to others” and “oversee”, which means
overseeing the realm of others, namely, exceeding one’s own duties and meddling
in others’ affairs.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)Sometimes, the suffering of Christians is
caused by themselves. If one has suffered unnecessary pains and persecutions
because of his own sins and the overstepping of his own duty, it is of no
spiritual value.

2)Christians’ evil speaking and works are
often caused by evil heart. Therefore, keep our heart more than anything that
is guarded (see Pro. 4:23).

3)He who does not manage his own things likes
to meddle in others’ affairs. It is abnormal if one oversees everything of
others but ignores all that of his own. The more one thinks he is spiritual,
the more may he make such mistakes.

1Pet.4:16 “Yet if anyone suffers as
a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but let him glorify God in this matter.”

YLT:
“and if as a Christian, let him not be ashamed; and let him glorify God in this
respect;”

Meaning
of Words:“Christian”: with the odor of anointment; “be
ashamed”: feel shame;

Literal
Meaning:“yet if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be
ashamed”, “suffers
as a Christian”: suffer for the
name of Christ (see v.14); “be ashamed”: feel shame;

“But let him glorify God in this matter”, “glorify God”, there are two meanings: 1)
feel glory as a Christian and thus offer thanksgiving and praises to God; 2)
make those who are in the world realize that Christians have God inside and
give glory of the good conduct unto God;

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)It is not a shame for us to be Christians.
On the contrary, it is glory to us.

2)Persecution is a sign of God’s approval to
our works (see Acts 5:41). We need not seek tribulation nor escape it, but
still do what we have to do without caring whether there will be tribulations.

3)Morgan said, “”.

4)“Christian”.

1Pet.4:17 “For the time has come for
judgment to begin at the house of God; and if it begins with us first, what
will be the end of those who do not obey the gospel of God?”

YLT:
“because it is the time of the beginning of the judgment from the house of God,
and if first from us, what the end of those disobedient to the good news of
God?”

Meaning
of Words:“begin”: commence;
“end”: ultimate conclusion;

Literal
Meaning:“for the time has come”, it carries two
aspects of meaning: 1) “the time has come”, the time of writing this epistle has
come; 2) “the time is coming”: the Lord’s second coming is coming.

“For judgment to begin at the house of God”,
“judgment” has two aspects of meaning: 1) the judgment of God’s chastening in
this age, that is to say, we suffer as the Christians (see v.16); 2) the
judgment before the judgment-seat of Christ when the Lord comes again (2Cor.
5:10), which aims at believers (see 1Cor. 3:13-15); then there will be the
judgment upon all nations before Christ’ throne of glory (see Matt. 25:31-32).

“The house of God” refers to the church (see
1Tim. 3:15; Heb. 3:6); “begin at”, here it relates to the order of judgment; no
matter at present or in future, the judgment of God shall begin from the church
and then to all the world.

“And if begins with us first”, “if” here it
does not give a supposition, but mentions a fact.

“What will be the end of those who do not
obey the gospel of God”, “those who do not obey the gospel of God”: broadly
speaking, it refers to all the unbelievers in the world. And narrowly speaking,
it refers to all those who persecute Christians; “what will be the end”, it
indicates that more serious judgment will be upon them and their end will be
miserable.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)There are differences of order and of degree
in the judgment of God. Obviously, the earlier, the less serious of the
judgment. And the later, the more serious of the judgment.

2)Christians would rather receive the judgment
of God on the cross than suffer the judgment of God on the great white throne
(see Rev. 20:11-12). We choose rather suffer the chastening of God’s present
judgment than suffer the punishment of God’s judgment in future (see 1Cor.
3:13-15; 4:5).

3)How worthwhile it is to suffer today and
thus be delivered from more afflictions in the future. However, what a great
loss of the present enjoyment that makes us lose the greater enjoyment in the
future (see Matt. 16:25, 27).

1Pet.4:18 “Now "If the
righteous one is scarcely saved, Where will the ungodly and the sinner
appear?"”

YLT:
“And if the righteous man is scarcely saved, the ungodly and sinner -- where
shall he appear?”

Literal
Meaning:this verse may be the quotation of the verse
in the Book of Proverbs ---- “behold, the righteous shall be requited on the
earth: how much more the wicked and the sinner” (Pro. 11:31).

“Now if the righteous one is scarcely saved”, “the righteous one”:
believer who has been justified by faith (see Rom. 5:1); “be scarcely saved”, it
does not mean “one is saved by chance even though he was almost dying”, but
that “one has finally obtained the salvation after many difficulties”. That is
to say, one is saved hardly.

“Where will the ungodly and the sinner appear”, “the ungodly and the
sinner”: unbelievers of the gospel (see v.17), especially those who have many
evil works after “the lusts of men” (see v.2-3) and those who revile and
slander and persecute Christians (see v.5; 2:12; 3:14); “where will … appear”:
be unable to stand before the judgment seat (see Ps. 1:5-6);

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)As far as the objective knowledge is
concerned, we Christians are righteous before God (see Rom. 8:33). However, as
for the personal experience, we have to do good “see v.19” and lead a holy life (see v.2; 1:15-17; 2:12) so
that we are righteous truly (see 3:12-13).

2)The salvation of spirit is easier than the
salvation of soul ---- it is easy to obtain eternal life, but it is difficult
to be rewarded. Objective justification is easier than the subjective
justification ---- it is easy to be justified by faith, but it is difficult to
be justified by works.

3)“The righteous one is scarcely saved” ----
the door of Christians is difficult to enter in and the path of Christians is
difficult to walk upon (see Matt. 7:13-14). And there are many tribulations in
Christians’ life on the earth (John 16:33; Acts 14:22).

4)Christians suffer first and then are
blessed. Men in the world enjoy happiness first and then suffer. The former
(Christians) suffers little and is blessed boundlessly. And the latter (men in
the world) enjoys little happiness and yet will suffer endlessly.

1Pet.4:19 “Therefore let those who
suffer according to the will of God commit their souls to Him in doing good, as
to a faithful Creator.”

YLT:
“so that also those suffering according to the will of god, as to a stedfast
Creator, let them commit their own souls in good doing.”

Literal
Meaning:“therefore let those who suffer according to
the will of God”, “therefore”, this verse is the conclusion of the paragraph
from verse 12 to 19. “Suffer according to the will of God”: those who live
according to the will of God in the mind of suffering (see v.1-2; 3:17); “do
good”: walk in good with whole heart;

“Commit their souls to Him in doing good, as to a faithful Creator”,
“their souls”, soul is the person of a man, representing one’s “self”.
“Commit”: the present tense shows that it is a continual action. And this word
is a term used in banking, which means handing over something as deposit and
entrusting everything to the one who receives (see 2Tim. 1:12).

“As to a faithful Creator”: the faithful Creator is God Himself;
“faithful”, He will keep His promises and not forsake us. “Creator”: He will
fulfill His works of creation instead of giving up halfway.

Enlightenment
in the Word:

1)Believers’ sufferings should be according to
the will of God. The zealous religionists who act on impulse without any
pursuit of God’s guidance will cause disasters.

2)Since suffering is the will of God, our
suffering for the sake of God must not be in vain, but will achieve certain
purposes. Likewise, when we are in suffering, God will take full responsibility
of making us attain to that purpose.

3)The will of God for us is to do good (see
2:15) and suffer because of doing good (see 3:17) not doing evil.

4)Remember in suffering that Satan can at most
kill our bodies but cannot kill our souls (see Matt. 10:28). Therefore, let us
be not afraid of it.

5)Today, he who desires to save his life will
lose life. However, if one loses his soul life because of suffering for the
Lord, he will obtain soul life (see Matt. 16:25).

6)Christ is our Creator ---- we are of Him in
the creation in the beginning. And in the new creation, we are also of Him
(Eph. 4:24; Col.
3:10). In the both aspects, we are the objects of His love and attendance. It
is most right that we commit our souls to the Lord who creates and saves our
souls.

7)“The Creator”, it refers to His omnipotence.
“Faithful”, it shows that one thing he is unable to do ---- He cannot deny
Himself (see 2Tim. 2:13).

III.
Outlines of the Spiritual Lessons

Arm Oneself with the Mind of Suffering

A.Deal with the flesh by suffering and cease
from sin (v.1);

B.No longer live in the flesh for the lusts of
men, but live according to the will of God in the world (v.2);

C.No longer walk according to the will of the
Gentiles (v.3);

D.Choose rather be blamed by men in the world
than sin against the Lord who judges (v.4-5);

E.Imitate the examples of believers who live
by God according to the hope of the gospel (v.6);

Differences between Believers and the
Gentiles

A.Different views: have the mind of suffering
(v.2) ---- the pleasures of lewdness and drunkenness (v.4);

B.Different motives: according to the will of
God (v.2) ---- according to the lusts of men (v.2);

C.Different directions: live the rest of time
for the will of God (v.2) ---- run the flood of dissipation (v.4);

D.Different ends: live according to God in the
spirit (v.6) ---- be judged by the Lord (v.5);

Several Pairs of Opposite Things

A.The lusts of men and the will of God (v.2);

B.Past lifetime and no longer (v.2-3);

C.Man’s blaming and the Lord’s judgment
(v.4-5);

D.Flesh and spirit (v.6);

E.Suffering and joy (v.13);

F.Suffering for doing evil and suffering as a
Christian (v.15-16);

G.Beginning and end (v.17);

H.The righteous and the ungodly and the inner
(v.18);

Comforts in Suffering

A.For he who has suffered in the flesh has
ceased from sin (v.2);

B.For he who persecutes us will give an account
to Him who is ready to judge the living and the dead (v.5);

C.For the end of all things is at hand (v.7);

D.For we suffer with Christ together and are
reproached for the name of Christ (v.13-14a);

E.For the Spirit of glory and of God rests
upon us (v.14b);

F.For the suffering as a Christian will
glorify God (v.16);

G.For we suffer according to the will of God
(v.19);

The Necessary Responses to the “Time”

A.Since the time of doing evil in the past is
enough, let us live the rest of our time for the will of God (v.2-3);

B.Since the end of all things is at hand, we
have to catch the opportunity to serve others (v.7-11);

C.The time of judgment is coming, so we have
to do good according to the will of God (v.17-19);

“Ten Commandments” for Believers

A.Be serious (v.7a);

B.Be watchful in prayers (v.7b);

C.Have fervent love for one another (v.8);

D.Be hospitable to one another (v.9);

E.Minister to one another (v.10);

F.Do not think it strange (v.12);

G.But rejoice (v.13);

H.Not be ashamed (v.15-16);

I.Glorify God (v.16-18);

J.Commit to God (v.19);

Things Good Stewards Have to do

A.Be serious (v.7a);

B.Be watchful in prayers (v.7b);

C.Have fervent love (v.8);

D.Be hospitable to one another (v.9);

E.As each one has received a gift, minister it
to one another (v.10-11);

How to Face the Fiery Trials?

A.Do not think it strange … as though some
strange thing happened to you (v.12);

B.But rejoice to the extent that you partake
of Christ’s sufferings (v.13);

C.Know that the Spirit of glory and of God
rests upon us (v.14);

D.Do not bring unnecessary suffering to oneself
(v.15);

E.Do not be ashamed because of the suffering
as a Christian (v.16);

F.Receive persecutions and regard them as the
purifying judgment of God (v.17-18);